1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a mechanism for braking a ski released from a sports boot and, if necessary, for holding together skis placed with their runner surfaces back to back against the other, incorporating a bearing mechanism for a brake lever assembly which can be attached to the top face of a ski, which brake lever assembly has brake levers disposed substantially symmetrically relative to the longitudinal mid-axis of the ski, each having operating arms and braking arms, which braking arms project out from the bearing mechanism and can be pivoted about at least one pivot axis by the force of stored energy from an operation-ready position above the runner surface of the ski into a braking position projecting out below the runner surface, and the operating arms extend from the bearing mechanism in a direction remote from the brake arms and are joined in displacement by means of a bearing arrangement with an impact plate which can be depressed by the sole of a sports boot, and a catch mechanism is provided on the braking arms to enable them to be releasably connected to mutually crossing brake arms of another brake mechanism of a co-operating, oppositely lying ski if necessary.
2. The Prior Art
EP 0 193 767 A1 discloses a ski brake with additional means for hooking two skis together if necessary. Accordingly, a recess or notch is provided on each of the inner faces in the region of the bottom free ends of the two brake arms. These notches are used for partially engaging the top and relatively thinner portion of the two brake arms of an oppositely lying ski, directed towards the bearing mechanism. When to connected one another, the two skis are therefore slightly offset from one another in the longitudinal direction.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,181,321 A discloses a ski brake, in which a notch is provided in the middle longitudinal portion of each of the inner faces of the two brake arms, which can be moved so as to engage with the outer edges or external boundary surfaces of the brake arms of an oppositely lying ski. Although two adjacently lying skis can be held together by this arrangement, a relative shifting of the two skis of a pair skis in the longitudinal direction can barely be prevented or can be so but not satisfactorily, as is the case with the embodiment mentioned above, which means that the brake connection can be inadvertently released, e.g. when carrying the pair of skis.